The weather conditions between April and June 2026 could be a mixture of warm nights throughout the country, hotter than normal days in the eastern, northeastern and northernmost regions accompanied by above normal duration of heat waves, according to the latest forecast from the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
This seasonal outlook for weather from IMD is a little different from the earlier outlook for March to May released at the end of February. The March-May outlook had predicted higher than normal maximum and minimum temperatures throughout India.
In the April-June outlook, the weather agency has predicted normal to below normal maximum temperatures for large parts of north, northwest, central and south India, especially towards the western side of the country. The daytime temperatures could be above normal for most of eastern, northeastern and some parts of eastern south India.
The nighttime or minimum temperatures for most of the country, except some parts of central India could be above normal. This prediction has not changed much from the earlier prediction for March-May.
IMD predicted higher than normal number of heat wave days for many parts of the country between March-May and the prediction is similar for April-June as well. The only difference between the two periods is the possibility of higher number of heat wave days in April-June than in March-May.
Many parts of the country could receive above normal rainfall in April, according to the IMD. The only exceptions to this forecast are regions in the east such as West Bengal and in the Northeast, such as Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur and Mizoram. The extent of the above normal rainfall forecast is much higher in April than it was for March.
The eastern and northeastern states received higher than normal rainfall in March, even though IMD had predicted normal and below normal rainfall for these regions in its March-May seasonal forecast.
“During April 2026, above-normal heatwave days are likely over many parts of coastal areas of Odisha, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Andhra Pradesh and isolated regions of Gujarat, Maharashtra and Karnataka,” according to the IMD press release.
“The increased likelihood of heatwave conditions may pose significant risks to public health, water resources, power demand, and essential services, particularly affecting vulnerable populations such as the elderly, children, outdoor workers, and individuals with pre-existing medical conditions,” wrote IMD in its press release.
“Elevated temperatures can lead to heat-related illnesses and additional stress on infrastructure and resource management systems,” the weather agency added. The IMD has also provided a list of impacts of the above normal temperatures and heat waves on agriculture throughout the country in April. The weather agency has also given a set of agromet advisories for the month.
“Significant heat stress during reproductive stages of Boro rice, maize, green gram, black gram and vegetables (tomato, chilli, brinjal), leading to poor grain setting, flower drop and reduced yields in east and northeast India, northwest India and southern peninsular India,” as per IMD’s press statement.
IMD has also highlighted that there could be accelerated maturity of late-sown wheat, chickpea and lentils which could result in reduction in grain filling duration and yields across east and east-central regions of the country. There could also be flower and fruit drops in mango and banana plantation, especially in southern India.
The suggestions for farmers to mitigate the effects of heat include providing light and frequent irrigation to standing crops of rice, maize, pulses and oil seeds at stages of growth such as flowering and grain filling. This is particularly for regions in the east, east-central and southern India.
IMD also advised for “complete harvesting of wheat and mustard at the earliest to minimise losses due to terminal heat stress in northwest India” and for regular monitoring of crops for the attacks of insect-pests such as “aphids, whiteflies and thrips, and fungal diseases under forecasted warm and humid conditions."